The recent incendiary headlines regarding the California High Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) employing “lobbyists” was another attempt by opponents to avoid substance and attack the process of building our nation’s first high speed rail system. Make no mistake, this isn’t an abuse of taxpayer money and the holier than thou statements of some pundits are simply cowardly political attacks on very good people.

As someone who embraces public service as an integral part of the American social contract, it dismays me when government moves to minimize the voice of the people it represents. Case in point: The recent flirtation with folding 20 volunteer City Commissions into five. Yes, that’s five.

San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed makes no secret of his distaste for the union-aligned sentiments of some City Council members. And while he may or may not have beat the bushes for challengers in the upcoming election, rumors suggesting just that may have something to them. This weekend Reed will open his home to host a campaign kick-off fundraiser for Tam Truong, the San Jose police detective who favors pension overhaul like the mayor and is challenging Kansen Chu in District 4.

I hope we can agree to stipulate that American jobs will require more cognitive ability today and in the ensuing decades than ever before in American history. Therefore, the push for higher academic standards for all public schools logically follows. Yet when I try to connect the dots among the issues on the American agenda for education, to increase cognitive skills for its system of public schools, I get these Whiskey, Tango and Foxtrot (WTF) moments. 

The list many public employees dread every year—annual salaries—posted to the city’s website. No one came close to matching last year’s top earner, retired police chief Rob Davis, but there were some interesting numbers pertaining to high-profile executives and their subordinates.

For this weeks blog, I am continuing the discussion about providing a fixed percentage of the budget towards police. A nickname for this might be, “We Get, You Get.” The name refers to when the aggregate budget grows, then funding for the most critical service a city can provide—police—would grow. (Providing a sewer system is a close second for the most critical service).

The City Council’s agenda has few items to discuss Tuesday, but there is an item pertaining to an annual Greek flag raising ceremony, which could always spiral out of control. Other issues on the agenda include a labor negotiations update, an application for strategic growth grants and the likely approval of streamlining the process to sell the city’s surplus real estate properties.

Don’t expect to see San Jose’s Chuck Reed join the growing list of mayors who have pledged their support to the Freedom to Marry campaign. In an interview with San Jose Inside last week, the mayor said he supports civil unions and domestic partnerships, but he draws the line at marriage. San Jose is the largest city in the country not to have its mayor supporting Freedom to Marry.

The quixotic Occupy movement needs some real leadership now.  While most of us share the concerns of the movement and have marveled at their ability to highlight issues that have really caused our economic pain, the immature and needless violence against people and property is hurting their cause and is ineffective in creating the change they seek.

The city of Oakland hired Teresa Reed to be its new fire chief Wednesday, continuing a trend of former San Jose public employees finding work with nearby municipalities. But Reed’s change in employment, after retiring from the San Jose Fire Department less than two weeks ago, appears to be just one example of why Mayor Chuck Reed (no relation) and other city officials in San Jose are clamoring for pension reform.

One of the best ways to raise money this election season appears to be counting Chuck Reed as an enemy. The mayor of San Jose’s apathy for labor-backers appears to have lit a fire under the fundraising efforts of union candidates.

The race for Liz Kniss’ soon-to-be vacant seat on the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors just lost Kathleen King, a candidate many considered to be Joe Simitian’s main challenger after Margaret Abe-Koga bowed out in early January. In a letter to supporters Tuesday, King, a former mayor of Saratoga, cited personal issues as the reason for bowing out.

Today marks my 150th column for San Jose Inside. It has been a bittersweet experience to write these posts for these last three years. I wish to thank Dan Pulcrano for the opportunity he has given me, an elected member of the Santa Clara County Office of Education Board of Trustees, to be heard on a variety of public education issues. One of the most important issues currently at hand is who will become the next county superintendent.

San Jose made a play for a satellite office with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), submitting a proposal with the help of the Silicon Valley Leadership Group. Included in the application are letters from Mayor Chuck Reed and Silicon Valley business execs stating their case to David Kappos, Under Secretary for Intellectual Property with the USPTO.

Elected officials come and go, and with that so do certain priorities. It seems that with every budget cycle, certain departments have to prove their worth and their existence. But why should support seesaw when something is so important as the Social Contract? I recommend that the city should commit to a specific police budget each fiscal year. San Jose should allocate a fixed percentage of the budget to the police department that is higher than the 34.7% today of an $885.8 million general fund budget.

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